


stop the world (because I want to stay with you)

by doctorkaitlyn



Category: Eyewitness (US TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Canon Continuation, Cuddling & Snuggling, Episode: s01e08 The Larson's Dog, Fluff, Literal Sleeping Together, M/M, Missing Scene, Sleepovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-07
Packaged: 2018-09-07 03:47:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,083
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8781736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doctorkaitlyn/pseuds/doctorkaitlyn
Summary: "Is everything alright?"  
"Yeah," Lukas replies, his voice barely louder than a whisper. In the moonlight, his bleached out hair almost looks silver, and Philip has to resist the urge to reach up and twist his fingers through it. "It's just... do you need to go back upstairs?"
(or, Lukas asks Philip to stay.)





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dansunedisco](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dansunedisco/gifts).



> title inspired by the song [Stop The World, I Wanna Get Off With You](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PyoxMSEHYI) by Arctic Monkeys.

"Philip?" 

Philip's eyes fly open and he jumps slightly, mattress squeaking underneath his body. He hadn't been sleeping, not quite, but he'd definitely been close to completely drifting off. It'd been hard _not_ to; it's been a long time since he's felt so comfortable, when he's felt so at _peace_ , even with all the shit that's still hanging over their heads. 

The curtains are half-closed, leaving bars of moonlight to slant through and splay across the bed. The only sounds breaking into the room are the occasional hard gust of wind outside and intermittent creaks as the house's old boards resettle themselves. It's infinitely quieter than the city, with its constant symphony of sirens and screams and screeching tires. The mattress is soft and yielding underneath the side of his body and Lukas, despite the almost frighteningly pale tinge of his skin, is warm and solid beside him, his bare chest emanating heat against Philip's arm, which has somehow ended up draped over the curving bars of Lukas' ribcage.

"Yeah?" he mumbles, twisting and burying a jaw-cracking yawn into his own shoulder. He pulls his arm back so that it's in its original position, curved against the side of Lukas' chest, palm resting on the hard, protruding line of Lukas' collarbone. "Is everything alright?" 

"Yeah," Lukas replies, his voice barely louder than a whisper. In the moonlight, his bleached out hair almost looks silver, and Philip has to resist the urge to reach up and twist his fingers through it. "It's just... do you need to go back upstairs?" On the surface, it's a straightforward question, which should have an appropriately straightforward answer, but Philip mulls it over for a few moments. 

Technically, while Helen and Gabe have never given him rules about people (or, more specifically, boys) sleeping over, he's sure that they'd prefer that he stay upstairs in his own bed overnight. But that preference would only apply if they _knew_ that he wasn't in his own bedroom, and he's almost entirely sure that they're completely unaware; when he'd slowly tiptoed his way down the stairs after Lukas called him, Helen was already asleep and Gabe had been sitting at the kitchen table, staring down into a class of vodka. He'd left the door of his own bedroom firmly shut when he left, and he doesn't think that either of his foster parents are in the habit of looking in on him while he sleeps. 

He could easily be wrong about that, but that's a bridge he'll cross if and when he comes to it. 

"I don't think they're going to notice," he belatedly replies. When he shifts his hand slightly, he can faintly feel Lukas' heart beating, pulsing gently against the lifeline on his palm. After a moment of waiting for Lukas to respond and getting nothing, Philip clears his throat slightly, and Lukas tilts his head to the side, in silent acknowledgment. "Do you _want_ me to go back upstairs?" 

Philip is certain that, less than a week ago, Lukas probably would have said yes. But now, after only a few moments of hesitation, he shakes his head and slides even closer, until their foreheads are braced against each other. 

"No," he says quietly, eyes half-closed, like it's easier to admit if he isn't looking directly at Philip. "I want you to stay." Just as Philip opens his mouth to reply, one of the floorboards directly outside the door creaks, and both of them freeze. Thankfully, the noise is followed by the sound of heavy footsteps trodding up the stairs; Gabe, apparently finished with his drinking, now off to bed. 

"Okay," Philip says, once the footsteps have safely moved directly overhead. "I'll stay." He leans in and presses a quick kiss against Lukas' half-parted lips before he slides off the mattress. He pulls his shirt over his head and drops it to the floor, but decides to pass on removing his jeans, for the time being; he doesn't want to risk stepping over the line they've been carefully walking since day one. 

Lukas pulls the blankets back while Philip is undressing and slides underneath, after setting his father's watch on the nightstand. Philip joins him, sitting on the edge of the bed and then sliding his legs underneath the blanket, mattress squeaking all the while. It's not a very large bed, and there's only inches of space between them, but for a moment, he resists sliding back over. He believes that Lukas genuinely wants him to stay, but he's afraid that fully committing to this will be a step too far, a step too intimate. If he _does_ close that space between them, he's afraid that Lukas will just flinch away, and their relationship (or whatever the hell it is) will be propelled back six steps. 

But, as it turns out, he doesn't have to worry about that; not tonight, at least. 

"Come here," Lukas says, stretching his lithe arm out wide, fingers groping towards Philip. "Like you were before." Philip doesn't think he's going to get a clearer invitation than that, so he rolls onto his side and shuffles closer, until his knee bumps against Lukas'. His head comes to rest on Lukas' shoulder. Lukas curls his arm around Philip's back, pulling him even closer. 

"Your arm is going to fall asleep," Philip murmurs, experimentally adjusting his leg until it's resting over top of Lukas', knee draped over his thigh. 

"Whatever," Lukas mumbles with a slight shrug. "I'll deal with it." He presses his face against Philip's temple, like when they were in the barn, and inhales deeply, like he's trying to ground himself. After a moment of trying to figure out to do with his arms, Philip curls one under himself and drapes the other over Lukas' waist, trying not to focus on how smooth Lukas' skin is. He's pretty sure that his own arm, the one underneath him, is going to fall asleep too, but he decides to take Lukas' advice and deal with it when that happens. 

The next time Lukas speaks, Philip is _definitely_ on the verge of actual sleep, not just drifting off. 

"You don't have to stay all night," he murmurs into Philip's hair, the words brushing against his scalp like a gentle breeze. "Not if you don't want to." 

"I'm not going anywhere," Philip replies, the words slurring slightly as they fall from his tongue. "Alright?" 

"Yeah," Lukas answers, and the sigh that falls from his lips sounds almost contented. "Alright."

**Author's Note:**

> as always, I can be found on [tumblr.](http://banshee-cheekbones.tumblr.com/) :)


End file.
